I. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the design of an improved humane animal trap of the type adapted to trapping a rodent (or other small animal) within an enclosure having an opening that is closed by a one-way door hinged from the top of the opening in the enclosure.
II. Description of the Prior Art
The art of animal traps is old and includes many designs that may generally be divided into two broad categories including traps that physically maim or kill the animal, such as the well-known spring-loaded snap trap, and traps that capture the animal within an enclosure (including traps that provide a substantially airtight enclosure in which the animal dies by asphyxiation).
Enclosure traps overcome significant disadvantages of the spring-loaded snap traps, notably the danger of injury to users (and small children) who may trigger the trap accidentally, and also the unsanitary and offensive aspects associated with disposing of animals caught in snap traps.
The most successful of the enclosure traps, exemplified by the traps disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,170, are characterized by a simplicity of design which makes for ease of use while enabling inexpensive manufacture. The trap disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,170 is manufactured by injection molding of a light thermoplastic material, resulting in an integral rectangular box having an open end that is closed by an inward opening one-way door made of the same plastic material as the enclosure, hinged to the top of the enclosure. The light plastic, integral construction of this trap has the advantage of light weight, while providing a wholly closed trap which protects the home user from any need to handle, or risk of even touching, the trapped animal.
However, lengthy experience with enclosure traps of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,170 for the trapping of rodents and particularly of mice has shown that certain disadvantages associated with such currently available enclosure traps render them unsuitable for a significant segment of the trap-purchasing public. First, many persons object to the “asphyxiation” traps as inhumane for subjecting trapped animals to a stressful death, citing evidence that mice caught in such traps often do not expire rapidly and instead thrash about furiously before succumbing. Also, instances have been reported of rodent escapes from these prior art traps resulting from (1) trap overturns, effected by the thrashing of a trapped rodent, that cause the trap door to open and permit the escape of the animal, and (2) the rodent's successful gnawing of a hole into a side edge of the trap's plastic door, either for use as a paw-hold to open the door inward into the trap, or escaping through the hole itself. It is therefore clear that many consumers desire a humane animal trap that catches and holds the animal, but that also permits the release of the trapped animal in good health, and, preferably, a trap that will not subject the trapped animal to excessive stress while trapped.
Accordingly there has been a need to provide an enclosure trap that avoids the disadvantages of the prior art enclosure traps.